The Honourable Police Commissioner of the Nigerian Ports Authority Eastern Ports Command CP Tami Evelyn Peterside (PSC) has tasked journalists to be proactive in their reports to help in the fight to reduce criminality in the Nigerian Ports.
The gallant officer made the call while addressing journalists of the Energy and Maritime Reporters Corpse in Port Harcourt.
She affirmed that journalists’ reports remain assets to the fight to reduce miscreants called port rats who are bent on frustrating the efforts of doing business at the ports and that of the government if not checked.
According to her, International Oil Companies (IOCs) Port Terminal Operators (PTOL) s (EMR) are all stakeholders in the maritime sub sector of the Nigeria’s economy.
“Your stories should be strategized to accommodate that which identifies you as co partners on port security.”
She reaffirmed that the enthronement of maximum security and peaceful business environment in the ports under her command remains her priority. The media and the police work together in synergy towards achieving the same goal of economic building in our society.
Deployed to the Eastern Ports Command in 2020, CP Peterside had met some nasty situation on ground, the likes of vandals who allegedly destroy the beams anchoring Berth 8 at the Port Harcourt Port Complex and in her gallantry had intercepted some suspects.
She had set up a new strategy to checkmate the movement of taxis into the port premises at unofficial hours when she became convinced that such scenario is capable of compromising the efforts of security operatives and business operators within the Eastern Ports Complex.
In her statement, the command under her watchful eyes cannot allow these miscreants to continue to jeopardize the ease of doing business at Nigerian Ports. She decried what the situation looked like during the ENDSARS protest and maintained that sanity must be restored to the ports.
She observed that beam vandalism are peculiar to Port Harcourt Ports only and not witnessed in Onne , Warri and Calabar ports at the moment and pleaded with seasoned reporters of Energy Maritime to partner as stakeholders.
She recalled that her proactive steps in collaboration with other security forces reportedly kept the four Eastern Ports safe during the ENDSARS protest and to keep the flag flying the management of the ports has acquired several gunboats to help in the fight against sea piracy.
To ensure a peaceful working atmosphere, the command is scheduled to meet with the host communities quarterly and have resulted to tackle every youth protest during such meetings.
She said, “I will not tolerate any kind of blockage to the premises of the ports and that of the companies doing genuine business with the ports by the youths. A situation where some companies were prevented from working until a ransom was paid cannot be allowed to continue.
“From now on, I am going to be having quarterly meetings with you people, anything you need that is due to your community will be looked into. Write your letters through your EXCO to the company and copy me and I will invite the company for genuine discussions.”
While reacting, the Chairman of the Energy Maritime Reporters Corpse, Mr. Martins Giadom congratulated the CP and men of her command for the arrest recently carried out at the ports and opined that the Energy Maritime Reporters will collaborate with her command in the fight to ensure the safety of the Eastern Ports under her command.